Anyone do Walt Bayless JJ?

[Sean Dempsey]

Anyone here actively doing Walt Bayless JJ? There is a school here that is our unspoken "rival", and alot of the guys come down to our Gracie place to see what the deal is. We've even had some guys convert away from the Bayless school.

Anyone here have experience with both and can illustrate the differences you've experienced? I know that Pedro Sauer has said that it's a great form of JJ, but the difference is "my sister can do Gracie style, but she couldn't do Bayless".

anyone have Bayless experience?

[Cain]

hmm, i know a guy that does Walt's stuff, and he praises it like it is a reincernate of god or something..

[suplay]

I do Bayless JJ.

Some of the Bayless school's former students now study with Pedro, and vice versa. It's just a matter of personal preference.

Can girls can do Bayless-style? I don't know about Pedro's sister, but the school has certainly had its share of females -- including top-ranked MMA fighter Jennifer Howe.

As for the "God reincarnate" comment, Walt simply has that effect on people. I confess I'm one of them. He's an amazingly gifted grappler, a great teacher, and a helluva nice guy. Because of this, he inspires a lot of devotion among his students.

BTW, Even though his old school continues to bear his name, Walt himself hasn't' been affiliated with it for several years now. He dislikes MMA/NHB (hates punching people) and has pretty much withdrawn from the martial arts world to focus on his career as an artist.

As for the differences between his style and BJJ, I don't think it's anything obvious. Good jiu-jitsu is good jiu-jitsu. Walt's students spend a lot of time learning position and movement before focusing on submissions, and he incorporates a lot of wrestling moves (greco takedowns, switch-sitouts, etc.), but there are probably BJJ schools that do the same. The most important thing that distinguishes Walt's style is just his personality. He has a great feel for people, helping you to get past your ego and making you feel like your having fun.

Hope this helps.